SAN DIEGO, Calif. (Jan­u­ary 16, 2026) — Nation­al Rain­bow Col­lege Fund (NRCF) is invit­ing stu­dents across Cal­i­for­nia to apply for its 2026 schol­ar­ship pro­gram begin­ning Jan. 14. The schol­ar­ship was ini­tial­ly cre­at­ed for LGBTQ+ stu­dents who are not pub­licly out and may be nav­i­gat­ing the col­lege admis­sions process with­out being ful­ly out to fam­i­ly, friends or their com­mu­ni­ty. Schol­ar­ships are open to all appli­cants, with an effort to reduce edu­ca­tion­al dis­par­i­ties for those who have faced bar­ri­ers relat­ed to sex­u­al ori­en­ta­tion, gen­der iden­ti­ty or gen­der expres­sion.

Nation­al Rain­bow Col­lege Fund will pro­vide up to $500,000 in schol­ar­ships for 200 Cal­i­for­nia stu­dents with an award of $2,500 per select­ed stu­dent. The appli­ca­tion peri­od is from Jan. 14, 2026, to March 5, 2026, and stu­dents can apply at RainbowCollegeFund.org/apply.

Today’s stu­dents face mount­ing finan­cial and emo­tion­al chal­lenges in their pur­suit of high­er edu­ca­tion. A recent sur­vey of stu­dents showed sig­nif­i­cant and per­sis­tent men­tal health chal­lenges and dis­crim­i­na­tion with many strug­gling to afford basic needs such as food, hous­ing and trans­porta­tion. To help address these issues, NRCF has launched a Stu­dent Advi­so­ry Coun­cil to ensure stu­dents have a for­mal voice in the future of the pro­gram, includ­ing the sup­port and resources they need to suc­ceed.

Nation­al Rain­bow Col­lege Fund is pow­ered by San Diego Foun­da­tion, one of the largest com­mu­ni­ty foun­da­tions in the U.S. and the largest provider of schol­ar­ships of any com­mu­ni­ty foun­da­tion in Cal­i­for­nia.

“Edu­ca­tion is a path­way to oppor­tu­ni­ty,” said Mark Stu­art, Pres­i­dent and CEO of San Diego Foun­da­tion. “Many LGBTQ+ stu­dents today face unique chal­lenges — social accep­tance, men­tal health issues, fam­i­ly rejec­tion — that hin­der their abil­i­ty to afford col­lege. This schol­ar­ship is about mak­ing sure stu­dents can keep going, even when the cost and the pres­sure feel over­whelm­ing.”

Schol­ar­ships may be used for tuition, books, fees, room, board, and oth­er edu­ca­tion­al expens­es. It does not need to be repaid.

Last year, NRCF announced the recip­i­ents of its 2025 schol­ar­ship pro­gram, award­ing $350,000 in edu­ca­tion­al fund­ing to 140 LGBTQ+ stu­dents and oth­ers across Cal­i­for­nia.

This rep­re­sents a near­ly three-fold increase from 2024, when NRCF award­ed schol­ar­ships to 50 recip­i­ents, demon­strat­ing the pro­gram’s rapid expan­sion and grow­ing impact in sup­port­ing LGBTQ+ stu­dents and oth­ers across Cal­i­for­nia. 

The pro­gram sup­ports stu­dents pur­su­ing high­er edu­ca­tion at com­mu­ni­ty col­leges, four-year uni­ver­si­ties, and trade or voca­tion­al insti­tu­tions nation­wide. Awards are based on a holis­tic review of aca­d­e­m­ic achieve­ment, com­mu­ni­ty involve­ment, their per­son­al sto­ry, and demon­strat­ed finan­cial need. The schol­ar­ship funds may be applied direct­ly toward tuition, fees, books and oth­er expens­es for the upcom­ing aca­d­e­m­ic year.

Eli­gi­ble appli­cants must be Cal­i­for­nia res­i­dents with finan­cial need who plan to enroll in an accred­it­ed insti­tu­tion in the Unit­ed States. Full eli­gi­bil­i­ty cri­te­ria and appli­ca­tion details are avail­able at rainbowcollegefund.org/scholarship-program.

For more details about eli­gi­bil­i­ty and selec­tion cri­te­ria, please vis­it rainbowcollegefund.org/apply.

To vol­un­teer as a schol­ar­ship appli­ca­tion review­er, please vis­it RainbowCollegeFund.org/volunteer.

Nation­al Rain­bow Col­lege Fund depends on donor sup­port to fuel its schol­ar­ships – every dona­tion mat­ters, no mat­ter the size. To donate to Nation­al Rain­bow Col­lege Fund and sup­port LGBTQ+ col­lege stu­dents and oth­ers in Cal­i­for­nia, vis­it RainbowCollegeFund.org/donate.

About National College Rainbow Fund

Nation­al Rain­bow Col­lege Fund is pow­ered by San Diego Foun­da­tion, one of the largest com­mu­ni­ty foun­da­tions in the U.S. and a lead­ing schol­ar­ship provider in Cal­i­for­nia. The fund sup­ports efforts to reduce edu­ca­tion­al dis­par­i­ties for stu­dents who have faced bar­ri­ers relat­ed to sex­u­al ori­en­ta­tion, gen­der iden­ti­ty or gen­der expres­sion, and is open to all appli­cants and allies who sup­port these prin­ci­ples.

Fol­low NRCF on social media: Insta­gram: @RainbowCollegeFund, Face­book: Rain­bow Col­lege Fund, LinkedIn: Rain­bow-Col­lege-Fund

About San Diego Foundation

San Diego Foun­da­tion believes in just, equi­table and resilient com­mu­ni­ties where every San Die­gan can pros­per, thrive and feel like they belong. We part­ner with donors, non­prof­its and region­al lead­ers to co-cre­ate solu­tions that respond to com­mu­ni­ty needs and strength­en San Diego. Since our found­ing in 1975, our com­mu­ni­ty foun­da­tion has grant­ed $1.8 bil­lion to non­prof­its to improve qual­i­ty of life in San Diego Coun­ty and beyond.

Media Contact

Maken­zi Jor­dan Rodriguez
Lan­dis Com­mu­ni­ca­tions Inc.
(424) 239‑8891
NRCF@landispr.com
www.landispr.com